"It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men." ~ Frederick Douglass

"We do not need to proselytise either by our speech or by our writing. We can only do so really with our lives. Let our lives be open books for all to study." ~ Mohandas Gandhi“Education is a process of living and not a preparation for future living.” ~ John Dewey“Education itself is a putting off, a postponement; we are told to work hard to get good results. Why? So we can get a good job. What is a good job? One that pays well. Oh. And that’s it? All this suffering, merely so that we can earn a lot of money, which, even if we manage it, will not solve our problems anyway? It’s a tragically limited idea of what life is all about.” ~ Tom Hodgkinson

"Personal empowerment begins with realizing the value of our own life experience and potential to affect the world. Our children deserve the opportunity to be part of – and learn from – the daily lives of their families and communities." ~ Wendy Priesnitz

"If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children." ~ Mohandas Gandhi “If I had to make a general rule for living and working with children, it might be this: be wary of saying or doing anything to a child that you would not do to another adult, whose good opinion and affection you valued.” ~ John Holt

I would never want to be Governor/President, etc because I believe there is more power in exacting change through the way I live my life. The impact individuals have on community->city->state->country and via families and social/acquaintance circles is more effective, long-lasting and comprehended better than simply enacting a law.

What/who changed my life and why

My father - he taught me that the world is bigger than my own backyard.

“We have a cultural notion that if children were not engineered, if we did not manipulate them, they would grow up as beasts in the field. This is the wildest fallacy in the world.” ~ Joseph Chilton Pearce

"If there is love, there is hope to have real families, real brotherhood, real equanimity, real peace. If the love within your mind is lost, if you continue to see other beings as enemies, then no matter how much knowledge or education you have, no matter how much material progress is made, only suffering and confusion will ensue." ~ HH the 14th Dalai Lama